Rep. Vella-Wilkinson and Sen. Felag highlight total exemption of military pensions in budget

 

            STATE HOUSE – Rep. Camille F. J. Vella-Wilkinson and Sen. Walter S. Felag, Jr. are happy to announce that going forward, all military pensions will be exempt from state taxation due to a provision in the recently approved FY 2023 state budget.

            Representative Vella-Wilkinson, a Navy veteran and member of the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee, and Senator Felag, the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Special Legislation & Veterans’ Affairs, have both been advocating for exempting military pension from taxation for many years at the State House.

            “For far too long, Rhode Island has remained an outlier in the nation in how we treat our honored veterans because we are one of the few states that taxes the income on veterans’ pensions.  Massachusetts doesn’t and neither does Connecticut.  Truth be told, Rhode Island is one of only four states in the nation that taxes military pensions.  Thankfully, the General Assembly has righted this wrong by supporting and enacting the budget proposal to finally exempt veterans’ pensions from taxation beginning in 2023.  I thank the supporters and advocates for this long-overdue tax reform, but most importantly, I thank our veterans for their dedication, bravery and sacrifices so that we all may live free,” said Representative Vella-Wilkinson (D-Dist. 21, Warwick).

            “Our military retirees have sacrificed so much for our country and I believe it is not only fair, but, also our moral obligation to honor their service by keeping their pension dollars in their pockets where it belongs.  I am thankful that this year we finally acknowledged the brave and selfless service of our retired military men and women by allowing them to keep the benefits they so rightfully earned and deserved by serving our country and preserving our freedom,” said Senator Felag (D-Dist. 10, Warren, Bristol, Tiverton). 

            The approved state budget exempts military service pensions from taxation beginning with tax year 2023.  The Governor recommended phasing this out over the next five years in 20 percent increments, however, the General Assembly decided to completely eliminate the tax on military pensions in the upcoming tax year.

            The exemption was a result of legislation Representative Vella-Wilkinson and Senator Felag introduced this year.  Representative Vella-Wilkinson and Senator Felag had significant input in the budget writing process due to the legislators being members of the House and Senate Finance committees.

 

 

The New York trial of former President Donald Trump is set to resume today with the judge deciding if Trump has violated his gag order. Prosecutors want him fined three-thousand bucks. Trump supporters say it's unconstitutional that Trump is limited to what he can talk about, while everyone else is allowed to speak freely about the case       All ten House Republicans from New York are calling on the Columbia University president to resign. This comes as hundreds of students have occupied the campus for days, protesting the Biden administration's response to the Israel-Hamas war.        The Supreme Court said Monday it will take up the issue of ghost guns. The weapons made from kits and can be bought with no background check. The ATF recently changed the rules, giving the government more power to regulate them. The question now before the high court is whether the A-T-F has the power to change gun rules or if that must come from Congress.       Robert F. Kennedy Junior wants the entire U.S. budget available on blockchain if elected. The Independent candidate said during a rally in Michigan on Sunday that it would allow any American to look at the budget any time. The blockchain is a ledger of transactions that is typically associated with cryptocurrency.        A recent poll suggests professionals in the U.S. are increasingly feeling a shortfall in the support provided by their employers for workplace well-being. This is despite over eighty percent of employees stating the importance of mental health support when seeking job opportunities. The poll by recruitment firm Robert Walters, shows sixty percent of professionals think employers should be doing more to preserve employee well-being.        Popular clothing retailer Express Inc. has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and plans to close 100 stores across the U.S.. Express, which also owns Bonobos and UpWest, said it will close 95 of its Express stores and all of its UpWest locations. The retailer said that it received a non-binding letter of intent from a group of investors to purchase the company.